Blue Crab and Cornhole

'Do you eat crab?' CME asked. Her co-host DME had just headed down to the back yard with one of two huge trays of steamed blue crabs.

The short answer is yes, but shellfish is a new tentative gastronomic category for me.

Growing up in the Midwest didn't present much opportunity to try a range of seafood. Sure, we had fish Fridays, but those dinners were mostly fresh water fishes fried to crispy goodness. When I was seven, I overdid the tartar sauce with a fish meal while on vacation at my grandparent's house in Colorado Springs. I can still remember standing in the family room of their home in my yellow Strawberry Shortcake pajamas, color draining from my face as my mom asked me if I was going to be sick. Although the fish wasn't to blame, I spent a long time after that avoiding any type of food that once lived in the water.

But times moves on, and palates grow up and forget small traumas.

Since I wasn't the only novice at the table last night, CME gave us a tutorial. Crab is not a food you can just bite into like a cheeseburger. You've got to work for every tasty nibble hidden in that shell. (CME explained that blue crabs are smaller than other varieties. It takes a bit more knuckle grease to make a meal out of them.)

I liked the process. There was a certain slow rhythm to it that matched my current pace quite well. Sitting there, patiently cracking, carefully picking out the flesh, plucking off bits of cartilage and dipping the meat into a mix of melted butter, lemon and Old Bay seasoning... It was similar to moving through a speedy metropolis with a fractured foot... so slow and careful that the smallest accomplishment seems like victory.

However, prying apart crabs was more zen and less anger-inducing than maneuvering through New York with an injury. The company was much better than strangers on the street as well.

Conversation was animated, and there was much discussion about how the crabs were cooked (steamed live) and prepared for eating (cleaned laboriously by DME).

How do I feel about eating a crustacean that was cooked live?

Well, I'm not sure.

Superficial research first revealed that crustaceans have nervous systems that are too simple to feel pain. I sighed with relief. Then I read about a study from scientists at Queens University in Belfast that was published and made the news in March of 2009. The study indicated crabs and other crustaceans like lobsters are able to feel pain, but more research is needed. You can read about the study on Discovery News. There was nothing more recent that I could see. So, we await more research.

The meal last night was superb, and the company was delicious. The crab was served with corn on the cob and guacamole and chips. Wine and beer was plentiful. And, there was recreation in the form of Cornhole. Not sure what Cornhole is? Believe it or not there is an American Cornhole Association with a website where you can find out more. (They even have a mission!)

There you have it, ladies and g's. Adventures in crab eating. Now shrimp, that's different. I'm not sure I'll ever really get into shrimp. They just look too much like bugs.

Stay tuned! (And forgive any typos!) And thanks to CME and DME not only for throwing a great party but for coming over today in the wake of hangover to assemble my new kitchen island from IKEA. Nothing like a round of virgin Bloody Mary's for us old folks in need of a little recovery.

And my favorite conversational bit last night was this:

'I average about two glasses of wine a night... is that bad?' (me)

'No, I think it shows restraint...' (AQ)

In good company, indeed.